The Rise of Video in B2B Content Marketing

15 November 2015, mantran

What do you prefer – a thousand word article explaining what the brand is all about or a short video doing the same job? The answer is obvious. It’s not just you. Let’s accept it. It’s only natural to choose visual content over a long text. No guilt there.

The online market space is crowded with content and extremely competitive. The fact that video can convey the message effectively in a very short time and its inherent quality of holding the attention of the viewer makes it an instant hit and a popular content marketing tool.

Are B2B professionals liking it too? Here are some amazing stats.

70% of B2B buyers watch videos throughout the buying cycle which is a 52% increase in just two years! Nearly half of these researchers are viewing 30 minutes or more of B2B-related videos during their research process, and almost one in five watch over an hour of content1.

And there’s more to it.

According to U.S. YouTube data, over 895K hours of some of the top B2B videos from brands were watched in 20141. 895K. Hours.

Visual content is quickly gaining precedence over other forms of content and, as a result, use of videos in B2B content marketing has seen a tremendous growth over the past few years.

How is B2B video marketing shaping up?

A study from Regalix Research3 shows that 78% of B2B marketers have identified videos as the most leveraged content type.

What’s more? 81% of the marketers say that videos will become indispensable for B2B marketers in the year 2015.

Preferred Content types for B2B marketers in 2015

In India, B2B marketers are catching up on the trend. A study from Octane Research4 indicates that there has been a remarkable growth in use of videos and it is estimated that there will be a 30% increase in investments in video marketing this year.

Trends in Content use by B2B Marketers in India

If you haven’t already gone the video way, here are more reasons why you should:

Videos are a favorite of C-suite executives and decision makers:80% watch more video than before2

Senior executives are seeking shorter but highly informative forms of content to satisfy their content needs. Videos seem to be a popular content form as 75% of senior executives are watching videos on business sites every week. Interestingly, 65% of those executives go on to visit the vendor’s website after watching videos2. More reason for B2B video marketing to take off!

2. It is a great way to promote your brand and your products/services throughout the purchase cycle

From start to finish, a purchase cycle sees a different audiences and personas researching and evaluating solutions. Different video types can be targeted to reach out to these interested parties. A researcher may be interested in explainer videos, an influencer may be interested in knowing more about your brand and a decision maker would like to view a customer testimonial, for example. In relation to the product, the needs of the researchers, influencers and the decision makers are different at various stages of buying cycle.

A study by Regalix Research3 shows the percentage use of videos by B2B buyers at various stages of buying cycle.

Use of video content at different stages of the buying cycle

3. Videos on landing pages of your website can give you 80% increase in conversions5

Now, what can be better for business than this? Visitors, on an average, spend fewer than 15 seconds on the website. So you have just 15 seconds to grab attention, connect with the prospect, build trust and get your message across. Now that’s a lot of work to do in 15 seconds!

Videos buy more time with a visitor. A visitor would rather click on the video to get information, than go through the website. It encourages the visitor to stay longer on the website giving more time for the brand message to sink in. It can effectively deliver heaps of valued information in a very limited time. Most importantly, it can nurture the interests of the prospect and move him/ her to the next buying stage.

4. Videos can potentially enhance other content marketing efforts

If you are already at it, videos can work in tandem with other content marketing activities and help a B2B marketer effectively converse with the target audience and generate quality leads.

Let’s say, you are strategically building your presence in social media which serves as an efficient platform to share videos and get the audience talking about you. A B2B buyer who has watched a video – assuming your video piques his curiosity – may inquisitively look for more information, discuss with colleagues, share the video, and visit the brand’s website. In the process, the buyer may read blogs, research papers, infographics, watch more relevant videos to connect and evaluate the brand.

Videos can thus extend the length of engagement, giving a window to build trust with buyers and connect to the brand.

While larger forms of content are still sought by B2B buyers and influencers to make purchase decisions, it is the shorter forms of content like videos that are necessary to grab the attention, quickly deliver valued knowledge, influence the business audience and nurture prospects through the buying stages. B2B marketers should aim at setting aside a budget for video marketing to engage prospects at maximum points in the buying cycle by helping them research, learn about solutions and current trends, compare and guide them back to you for purchases, no matter where they go.